Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1887-04-30
JONES SPRINGS NEWS.

Editor of THE HERALD. Dear Sir !:
The following summary report of the
Elk Branch School for the term lust
closed may be of interest to some of
your many readers. Before giving
the report however, wish to make a
few remarks. This school is often
called the jones' Spring School, some
times the Snyder's School, either of
these names will do, but neither of
them is so appropriate as Elk Branch,
because Jones Spring is more than a
mile from the school house and the
lot is not a portion of Snyder's farm.
The house stands within four rods of
the main branch, flowing on the west
and between two tributaries one on
the North and the other on the South,
neither of which is more than twenty
feet from the building; a dollar should
be spent by the Board of Education to
connect the two east of the house; so
that the children could step out of the
door without stepping into the run so
long as the house stands where it now
does it should be called Elk Branch
School.
A number of the patrons of this
school have, lin the term just closed)
shown their appreciation of the priv
ileges they enjoy in having an oppor-
tunity to educate their children and
have manifested an interest in their
welfare by sending them to school.
Some will permit their children to go
if they 1.-THE children) wish 10 do, and
especially if they like to go, while
are others who make education exclu-
tor
to forget their duty and the debt they
to the country and to their God. Gen.
orally, if a school is well attended, the
teacher claims hehonor. No teacher
should have any credit for the atten-
dance of children in school except it
be those of his own. The honor or
credit belongs to the parents, it shows
the interest they take, and to a
great extent, it shows how much they
care for the future good of their chill
dren and for their future destiny. o.
but I don't like the teacher, then y0at
send to school because you like the
teacher and not because you have them
know something. Well-the children
don't like to go. Why? This short
and important question is being an
swered by too many teachers in a
manner that large number of parents
are ignorant of. 1t is being answered
by letting children not only do as they
please at long recesSes and moons but
also by letting them spend greater
portion of the time during school
hours in idleness, by permitting them
to pass on through books without
study, by letting them have just such
books as they want and no others, by
correcting very few mistakes, by re-
proving no faults, and if they do, cor
rect or reprove, it is done in such a
as that the children fail to
realize that there is anything wrong
in what they said or done. Is this all
the answer, not by any means. The |
poisonous vial of Flattery is
brought and profusely poured into the
minds of the children by telling them
they are learning fast, that if they
soon be able to teach school, that they
fill the offices of our country, that
some may be the President of the
United States at a salary of more than
four thousand dollars per month, and
the mind is filled with such abomina-
BILE imaginary stuff SO that it will be
impossible for them to know anything
worth speaking of until there is a rad
ical change. Some parents may ask,
why is it that teachers do this. The
answer is easy to give. If they do
thorough work they soon drive the
children out of school, and so they
take this plan to secure large atten-
dance, thinking some of them at least
like many other people, that large |
constitutes good school. |
The thought is certainly very err
one especially when the at
tendance is secured in the foregoing
manner.
The enumeration of the entire Sub
dist. is Sc. The number in attendance
the present term 46. No. of girls Is.
No. of boys IS. Average daily atten-
dance of the girls for the term (6 mon.) |
s, boys 13, total 81.
l wish to say to the patrons of this
school that there are seven branches
provided for, in the common school,
you can't afford to be without either
of these branches. A knowledge of |
one, enables your children the better |
to understand the other. Ifyou wish |
to have your children avail them
selves of the benefits provided for
them, you must furnish the books that
they need. When children are per-
mitted to read in the fifth and sixth |
readers, they should be made study |
the other six branches, you should !
insist upon your children studying all
the branches OF they will soon be
:" behind time" M. X. B.